Method of and apparatus for setting pipe or casing and preventing seepage and leakage in wells



`30 1,641,035 Aug F1927 G. A. HERO METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR SETTINGPIPE OR CASING AND PREVENTING SEEPAGE MJD LEAKAGE IN WELLS Filed oct.14, 1924 INVENTOR G'eoye /1.Hera,

BY i" l .f 4W ATroRNEYs Patented Aug. 30, 1927. Y

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE GEORGE ALFRED HERO, OF NEW ORLEANS,VI`.|OUISI.A1\I'.A..

METHOD 'or AND vAPPARATUS EOE SETTING PIPE 0E CASING AND PEEVENTINGSEEPAGE AND LEAKAGE 1N WELLS.

Application led October 14, 1924. Serial No. 743,599.

This invention relates to a novel method fof and apparatus for settingp1pe or casing and for preventing seepage and leakage 1n wellsespecially where conditions are unfav' tion is to provide a method andapparatus of this character which may be carried out and operated bymeans of facilities and agencies ordinarily available at a.comparatively slight cost and without the expenditure of anyconsiderable degree of time and labor and which is nevertheless designedto successfully deal with any of the conditions mentioned in theforegoing paragraph.

Other objects and advantages of the invention reside in certain novelfeatures to be hereinafter more fully described and par-k v ticularlypointed out in the appended claims, reference being had to theaccompanying drawing forming a part of this specification, and in which:

Figure 1 is a fragmentary view in elevation showing a casing or pipe setin a well in accordance with the present invention and showing themanner in which the running 4sands and the water bearing strata aresealed off; and

Figure 2 is a view partly in section and partly in elevation showing theconstruction of a unitemployed in the embodiment of the inventionillustrated in Figure 1.

Referring to the drawings, and moreparticularly to Figure 1, the numeral5 ldes- 'ignates generally a well into which a casing or pipe G isintroduced. ln order to cement and seal offthe running sands and waterbearing strata in ractice a unit of the present invention, in icatedgenerally at 7, is provided for each section or' strata to be sealedoff. These units 7 may be divided in any number and as they are ofidentical construction a common description will serve for all.

As shown to advantage in Fig. 2 each section or portion of the casingorpipe 6 Lwhich carries a unit 7 is wrapped with a length of fabric orflexible material such as can` vas or burlap, such wrapping beingindicated generally at 8 and preferably consisting of a length offlexible material spirally wound on thesection of the casing whichcarries the unit 7 Of course, it is to be understood that in lieu ofspirally winding the flexible vmaterial it may be wrapped around thecasing in any desired manner and stitched or otherwise suitably securedthereto.

Each unit 7 includes a main container 10 of flexible material which isyieldable and deformable and which may be a bag of canvas or burlap orany other suitable material having its lower end restricted, as at 11,and secured to the casing or pipe '6 in any suitable` manner as by meansof a binding or wrapping of soft wires 12. The main container 10 ispartially filled with cement which is indicated at 13. Above the cement13 a space or chamber 14 is provided. The upper end of the maincontainer 10 is closed by a suitable cover which may be provided byrestricting the upper end of the container, as at 15, and securing thisconstricted end of the container 10 to the casing 6 in any suitableway,.as for instance, by

Lmeans of a binding or wrapping of soft wire 16.

Below the main container 10 an auxiliary 0r secondary container,indicated generally at 20, is provided and takes the 'form of a tubularbag of canvas or burlap or other flexible fabric or material.` The lowerend of the container 20 is secured to the casing 6 in any suitablefashion, as for instance, by

means of a wrapping or binding of soft wires 21. The upper end of theauxiliary container 20 may be closed by the lower end of the maincontainer 10, in which case the lower end of the main container fittingin the upper end of the auxiliary container will act as a seal. Theauxiliary container 18 also contains a supply of cement, designated at22.

The cement 13 of the container l0 and the cement 22 of the container 2Oare pref'- erably constituted of liquid cement mixtures which aredesigned to set after the casing or pipe 6 has been properly positionedin the well.

It is to be noted that the main container 10 is flexible and deformableso that any irregularities in the well are taken care of for the reasonthat the container 12 will yield or conform to pass 0r accommodate suchirregularities. The yieldable and deformable qualities of .the maincontainer are enhanced by the provision of the space 14 which isdesigned to receive some of the cement 13 when any portion of thecontainer has been deformed or has yielded. The container 10 is closedso that the cement 13 is housed and protected against pollution ordilution by any of the substances met 'with in the well or in any otherway. This flexible fibrous container l() also acts as the p packer toinsure a perfect joint or union i maximum yieldability or deformabilityso that it can take care of any irregularities or defects in the well orcasing. This auxiliary container 2O acts as a protector for the maincontainer 10 when the casing is being lowered into the well and afterthe casing has been positioned in the well the casing 22 distends toform a seal after the cement has set.

I claim:

l. In combination with a casing, a main flexible container of tubularform encircling the casing and having its lower end secured thereto, theupper end of the container being provided with a cover whereby thecontainer is substantially closed, the container being adapted to carrya supply of liquid cement and to prevent dilution or pollution of theliquid cement mixture while permitting the same to set at the desiredpoint, and an auxiliary container positioned below the main container onthe casing, the lower end of the auxiliary container being secured tothe casing, the upper end of the auxiliary container being open andreceiving the lower end of the main container, the auxiliary containerbeing designed to receive a supply of liquid cement, the cement of theauxillary container being protected against dilution or pollution by theco-action of the lower end of the main container and the upper end ofthe auxiliary container and the open upper end of the auxiliarycontainer affordin a maximum capacity for yieldability anddeformabilit-y to the auxiliary container.

2. In combination with a casing, a. lurality of units carried by thecasing, eac unit including a main flexible container for liquid cement,and an auxiliary flexible container for liquid cement designed to serveas a pro- 4conform to the contour of the well hole, and

`being located at the point on the casing where it is desired to effectcementation and containing a quantity of liquid cement.

GEORGE ALFRED HERO.

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